For the first 15 days, nobody from Adarsh's family came to visit. "It was my parents who handed me over to the police", says Adarsh.

Highlights

19-year-old Adarsh coaches kids in various parts of the Capital.

Two years ago, he was found guilty of attempted murder.

He also works with Delhi Legal Aid spreading awareness about law.

The children look up at Adarsh (name changed) with approval as he bounces the football off his knees with amazing dexterity. The 19-year-old coaches kids in various parts of the Capital. But this wasn't always his life. About two years ago, he was found guilty of attempted murder. While many juveniles end up being repeat offenders, Adarsh decided to turn things around. Now he is not just a football coach but also helps Delhi Legal Aid spread awareness about law in communities and schools.

At the same time, he is also pursuing graduation from Delhi University. On a day in 2015, Adarsh went to watch a film with a cousin and a college senior. He says the other two got into a drunken brawl. Adarsh and his cousin ended up causing severe head injuries to the other boy. While he agrees to have committed the offence, he adds that it was dictated by circumstances. Both Adarsh and his cousin were sent to an observation home. He was 16 years old then. "I thought this was the end of the bright future I was looking forward to," he told Mail Today.

For the first 15 days, nobody from his family came to visit. "It was my parents who handed me over to the police." Life took a new turn for Adarsh when he first met his counselor, Moonis Iqbal, at the observation home. "All it took was one warm hug that taught me never to look back in life and gave me courage to turn things around." His story of reformation began with a simple task from his counsellor. "We were asked to observe and prepare a list of those inmates who showed a sign of improvement or wanted to leave their past behind and start afresh," he said. "Our counsellor engaged us in various discussions that created an urge in me to learn.

He asked us to read books and acquire knowledge. The other inmates began to look up to me and approached me for all their troubles." After being released, living with the family was a big challenge for Adarsh. He was barred from leaving the house. "I missed my books and wanted to get back to formal education."

Two years is what he asked for from his brother, after their father died. On coming back to Delhi, he got a job in an automobile workshop. "That was the worst phase of my life. People exploited and mistreated me," he said. "My counsellor, whom I was still in touch with, suggested I re-appear for the class 12 board exams." A senior official from Legal Aid noticed him and roped him in to conduct awareness programmes and also sent him to the football academy where he found his love for the sport. "I began coaching football. I picked it up real fast and this also gave me ample opportunity to study and I cleared class 12 with distinction."

Like Adarsh, 22-year-old Badri Prasad (name changed) was also a juvenile offender who is today a gourmet chef at a restaurant in Punjab. Originally from Nepal, he came to India when he was eight years old. He worked as a helper at various establishments. He was sent to six months in custody for murdering an 80-year-old woman who was also his employer. But he ended up languishing in Delhi's Tihar Jail for over three years.

He had an interest in cooking. At the jail he was famous for making a variety of mouthwatering parathas and momos. "I often experimented with recipes and received very good feedback," he told Mail Today. After working for a three-star hotel and small restaurants a former head chef roped him in for a new project that serves gourmet food. These days he is busy experimenting with pizzas, burgers and pastas.